On
21 February, at Long Key State Park in the Florida Keys, Alan Moss saw
what he was convinced was a Zenaida Dove. He returned the next morning
and spent two and a half hours searching for the bird and ultimately
photographed it. He relocated the dove on the lower half of Golden Orb
Trail where it was foraging in relatively open areas close to where the
trail opened up into a circular area bordered by mangroves.

Eventually the dove was seen by many observers through the
end of the month, even though sometimes the site sometimes became a
little over-crowded and the bird stayed back. Soon, orange
flagging-tapes, used as trail-markers, were placed in the area, to help
birders locate this rarity.

The Zenaida Dove resembles a Morning Dove, but with a shorter
and slightly rounded tail, not pointed, and with white trailing edges
to the secondaries. That last mark shows as a small white rectangular
patch on the inner secondaries on a perched or standing bird.

Zenaida Doves are largely residents of the West Indies and
Yucatán Peninsula. During Audubon's day, the species may have also been a
resident in the Florida Keys, but nobody knows for sure. Today, the
species is considered an accidental visitor, with only a few previous
records for s. Florida (and one, possibly, for Georgia), mostly between
fall and spring. Because the species is a strong flyer, this individual
could have originated in either the Bahamas or Cuba.

Since we're on the subject of rare birds in Florida, it's
appropriate to mention one puzzling appearance. A Great White Pelican, a
bird that is a resident of parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, was
discovered at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on the morning of
Sunday 28 February. By 'leap day,' the 29th, curious crowds started
forming.

Great White Pelican breeds from southeastern Europe through
Asia and in Africa at shallow lakes and coastal swamps. Wintering
locations for these pelicans originating in Europe are not exactly
known, but wintering birds may occur in northeastern Africa through Iraq
to north India.

It's hard to believe that this Ding Darling NWR bird was not
an escape, but as of this writing no zoo has claimed the bird. It had no
band. This pelican was associating with its similar-looking cousins,
American White Pelicans. Great White Pelican is a long-lived bird, so if
one escaped years ago, it may have just associated with American White
Pelicans without being noticed until now.

What can be cuter than baby birds? Or, on the other hand,
what can be more strange or reptilian? Regardless of your opinion, the
latest book by Julie Zickefoose, Baby Birds (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) may be worthy of consideration.

This hefty volume (338 pages) is a mixture of art and natural
history. Zickefoose provides plenty of each in more than 400 watercolor
figures to show the development of 17 different species of wild birds.
All but one nested on her home property in southern Ohio. Her artwork is
accompanied by individual intriguing narratives, all about the lives of
these nestlings. Clearly, she writes about them with authority.

She follows their day-by-day development, in both drawing and
accompanying text, chronicling their growth. Certainly, there is
material in there you never knew about, concerning Carolina Wren,
Ruby-throated Hummingbird, or Chimney Swift. As an artist and wildlife
rehabilitator, Zickefoose is uniquely positioned to create such a fine
work, and nothing like this has ever been attempted before. She has
broken new ground.

The only disappointing thing about the book is the
pencil-rendered script that accompanies much of the pieces of artwork.
While capturing an authentic presence of the artist as scientist, the
words are sometimes just too difficult to read.

No matter. We get a unique insider's view of the breeding
biology, growth, and charm of these creatures. Yes, they are ultra-cute.

IBA NEWS: GREAT THICKET POSSIBILITY

Shrublands and young forests in the northeastern U.S. often
have two fates: they are either cleared for development, or they grow
into mature forests. The first option ultimately means a loss of
habitat, a loss that cannot be reversed. The second option is beneficial
for woodland-oriented birds and wildlife, but it has a downside in that
there are both winners and losers in the process. Those species that
depend on dynamic, short-lived shrubland and young forest habitats
eventually get squeezed out as the forests mature into habitats that are
no longer acceptable to them. They then become the losers.

Fortunately, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has
determined that more permanently protected and managed shrubland habitat
is needed to restore wildlife populations and return an ecological
balance to the Northeast. To accomplish this, the USFWS has proposed
establishing a Great Thicket National Wildlife Refuge, in 10 separate
focus areas in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode
Island, and New York. Many of these landscapes are intended to secure
habitat for the New England cottontail rabbit, however many
early-successional bird species are also expected to benefit.

Not surprisingly, the 10 sites overlap or touch
already-designated Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in these six states.
Depending on the stage of vegetative growth in each site, benefits would
accrue to such species as American Woodcock, Eastern Whip-poor-will,
Prairie Warbler, Blue-winged Warbler, Brown Thrasher, and Eastern
Towhee.

If the Great Thicket plan is approved, the USFWS could begin
working with willing and interested landowners to acquire about 15,000
acres of land through conservation easements and fee-title acquisition.
The Service stresses that it will work only with willing sellers, and
that no owners will be forced to sell land for the new refuge unless
they want to. Not surprisingly the land acquisition process could take
decades to finalize.

You can read more details and access the proposal itself here, with the comment period extended to 3 April:

Take another look at the notice just above on the proposed
Great Thicket National Wildlife Refuge. It's a fine proposal that will
benefit some birds with particular shrubland and early-forest needs, but
it will take many decades to develop.

At the same time that it announced the plans for this unique
refuge, the USFWS announced that while this refuge must be managed
specifically for wildlife, there would also be wildlife-dependent
recreational opportunities available "whenever possible." This proviso,
plus the note that the USFWS gives special consideration to wildlife
observation, wildlife photography, fishing, hunting, environmental
education and environmental interpretation, provides some hints into the
agency's limitations in making access available at this new refuge -as
well as at already existing refuges.

Fortunately, the "big six" wildlife-dependent activities
mentioned above have special status at NWRs. (Contrast these, if you
will, with other activities such as camping, off-road biking, horseback
riding, or picnicking on refuges.) But even if you are interested in
wildlife/bird watching or wildlife photography on a refuge, that
activity relies on the Service's evaluation of the "feasibility" of such
activities. And feasibility often means finances and personnel to
facilitate access. It can also mean choosing between alternate options
for access.

The maxim to consider here may be, "Qui tacet consentiret,"
or "Silence gives consent." If advocates of wildlife-dependent
activities don't speak up, especially when public-land priorities are
being established, it can be difficult to complain later about the
decisions that have already been made. Let readers be vigilant!

THE FUTURE OF PUBLIC LANDS

Since we have touched upon our usual "access matters" story,
perhaps a lateral shift to a public-lands issue would be appropriate.
Public lands, of course, usually, but not always, provide just the kind
of access that bird enthusiasts crave. This is true whether considering
local urban parks - regular readers will remember our coverage in
January of the Painted Bunting in Prospect Park, Brooklyn - or expanses
of wild areas, such as the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The issue of support for public space - for birding and other
recreation - is going in both directions at the same time these days.

On the one hand, President Obama recently announced his
support for full funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)
in his FY17 budget request. The President's requested budget calls for
$900 million in conservation and recreation projects, through a
combination of discretionary ($475 million) and mandatory ($425 million)
funding, and pursues permanent authorization in annual mandatory
funding for LWCF beginning in FY18. Conservationists across the country
were thrilled. The attitude is well represented in the blog by the
National Wildlife Refuge Association, in response to the LWCF intent:

On the other hand, a Congressional assault against public
lands continued last month, with hearings for a number of significant
bills in the U.S. House, especially H.R. 3650 and H.R. 2316. The former
would enable state and county governments to take possession of National
Forests and manage them without regard to conservation and
public-access laws. The latter would allow states to seize - and
subsequently sell to private interests - millions of acres of National
Forests. Unfortunately, these proposals are viewed by some as
"reasonable answers and compromises" to the 41-day Malheur NWR seizure.
This would be a tragic misreading of the threat, merely a "kinder and
gentler" way to the same ends.

LEAD AND THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Lead is highly toxic to both people and animals, and lead
consumption by birds can be lethal. Last month, the European Commission
announced that it would continue to allow lead's use in ammunition. The
Commission had focused in the past on lead shot over wetlands, where a
waterfowl-oriented ban is already supposed to have been in place for
many years. (Fortunately, a lead-shot ban over water has been in effect
in the U.S, since 1991 and in Canada since 1999.) In the UK, however,
while lead shot has been banned at wetlands, as many as 70% of the ducks
harvested in England still contain lead shot. On the other hand,
several EU member states, such as Denmark and the Netherlands, have
phased out the use of lead ammunition.

Across the EU there are frequent cases of lead poisoning in
raptors. White-tailed Eagles, for example, are recorded every autumn
with signs of serious lead poisoning. Not unlike Bald Eagles in North
America, they regularly eat the carcasses of game species that still
have lead shot or bullets in them. The consequences are deadly.

Responding to the EU Commission's announcement, Ariel
Brunner, Head of Policy at BirdLife Europe and Central Asia, said,
"Alternatives to lead ammunition, such as steel shot and modified
bullets, are readily available and there is no reason to delay banning
lead in ammunition."

Meanwhile, back in the U.S., a parallel debate continues. In
November, we reported on a proposal from the Minnesota Department of
Natural Resources (DNR) that would require hunters to use nontoxic shot
on state Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) in Minnesota's farmland zone.
This is not a complete ban at WMAs in the region, but it could cover
about 46% of the state's 1.3+ million acres of WMAs. If approved, the
lead-shot ban will begin in 2018:

There's a possible new twist in the upcoming Federal Duck
Stamp art contest. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has recommended
that a non-waterfowl species in the background of the new stamp be
included in the stamp's design. Supporting arguments have been made that
it would help celebrate this year's centennial of the Migratory Bird
Treaty, could present a new challenge to artists, and might emphasize
that habitat secured through the stamp benefits species beyond
waterfowl. Many stamp traditionalists are resisting the proposal, but
the Friends of the Migratory Bird/Duck Stamp has offered a series of
compelling arguments in support of the change:

Last month, we wrote of the case in East Texas where two
Whooping Cranes were shot and the young man suspected of the activity
was charged with a Class B Misdemeanor offense. These cranes were
members of the experimental Louisiana flock which consisted of 44 birds:

Now, we understand that the case against the alleged shooter
of the two Whooping Cranes has been re-filed under the Endangered
Species Act, which increases the likelihood of larger penalties for the
crime. It was previously thought that the case against Mr. Trey
Frederick would be treated as a misdemeanor under the Migratory Bird
Treaty Act. This initial penalty was widely considered an insufficient
course of action.

The International Crane Foundation released a statement on
the situation which read in part: "In recent years, shooting incidents
have increased at an alarming rate. Whooping Cranes typically live 20-30
years in the wild and do not begin reproducing until 4 or 5 years of
age. Therefore, the loss of every individual has a devastating impact on
the future of this species."

No, not old-fashioned audio-tapes with bird song, but rather
engineering-survey tape, often used to flag construction sites or hiking
trails. You will recall that the location for this month's rarity, a
Zenaida Dove in Florida, was marked by orange flagging-tape as a
courtesy to help birders locate the site and the dove.

Usually colored in day-glow orange or red, this tape is often
sold as trail-marking ribbon or engineering-survey tape. But should
using this tape for birding purposes be considered "littering"? Good
question. While bright plastic tape is handy and effective, introducing
more plastic into the environment is often not a good idea. With a
little searching conscientious birdwatchers and hikers can find
biodegradable tape. Made of non-woven cellulosic material made from wood
pulp, such material lasts from three months to one year, should you
forget to remove it. This material is at least better than standard
plastic engineering-survey tape. Better yet, one can even use a pen or
pencil to write messages on the biodegradable tapes to inform other
birders, hikers, or campers of specific information.

In either case, when the need for any trail- or site-marking
is over, such marking tape should be removed from the area. In any
case, carrying a few yards of bright tape in your field pack is a good
idea. It may come in handy in the event of the discovery of an
interesting bird.

SNOW PACK IS UP!

No, this is not about skiing; it's about the California
drought. Residents of drought-stricken California have been cutting
back on water use, but have also fallen short of the 25% mandate set by
Gov. Jerry Brown, according to figures released at the beginning of
February.

At the same time, there is good news: at the start of last
month, the water content of the Sierra Nevada snowpack measured 130
percent of its historical average for this time of year. Although
January was quite good in California, February was not. Still,
California needs to see snowstorms almost each week for the next month
to seriously ease the drought. Traditionally, by this time next month,
the snowpack is at its deepest before melting and feeding rivers and
streams. The snowpack provides nearly a third of the state's water
supply during months when it melts and rushes through rivers and streams
to fill reservoirs.

Cities and towns, agricultural areas and refuges, ricelands
and suburbs all need the water. And the struggle over this valuable
resource continues in California. Birds are often neglected in the
process, and waterbirds such as waterfowl, shorebirds, long-legged
waders, and others can also suffer greatly. Water-associated food for
the birds - from fish and their eggs, to aquatic vegetationand
rain-induced flowering plants - depend on a reliable supply of
precipitation.

By this time next month, the snowpack depth will signal
whether the threats from the drought have been removed or whether
conditions are easing in the long-term - for humans and birds - after
the state's driest four-year period on record.

A POSITIVE MONARCH REPORT

We end with a report that is not specifically bird-oriented, although one that has bird implications.

According to the Mexico National Commission of Protected
National Areas, the monarch butterfly population in Mexico has increased
255 percent this season. At 150 million butterflies, the annual
overwintering count of monarch butterflies released in late February
shows an encouraging population rebound from last year's second
lowest-ever count of 42 million butterflies, but still a decline of 78
percent from the population highs of the mid-1990s.

During their international migration, monarch butterflies
breed along the way, and their northward journey is ultimately finished
by their offspring. Dwindling amounts of milkweed habitat - vital as
food for egg-laying monarchs- as well as erratic weather patterns, use
of some pesticides, and illegal logging in Mexico have led to a serious
decline in the monarch population.

"We are seeing the beginning of success," said Daniel Ashe,
Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "Our task now is to
continue building on that success." The United States is trying to
replace about 7.5 million acres of milkweed - either by planting or by
halting pesticide use, Ashe said. He said that areas of milkweed
increased by about 250,000 acres last year.

Creating and sustaining this kind of habitat not only
provides food for monarchs, it also supports other pollinators such as
honey bees, homes for other important insects, and, yes, provides
habitat and nesting material for grassland birds.

Indeed, there are multiple winners here.

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